Guardian
by blessende
Summary: Levi is sick and Eren is up to no good. Again. Set in the alternate universe of 'Searching for Levi'. Two Parts. [LevixEren]
1. Part 1

GUARDIAN

_[Set in the 'Searching for Levi' Universe. Year 2007. One of two parts.]_

The seventeen year old rang the bell, setting off Gale to announce his arrival. Dressed in his green parka, Eren tapped the door frame restlessly. _Please be home, please be home,_ went the chant in his head. The door to apartment #1263 cracked open after what seemed like an eternity and a man stood behind it. Levi gave the boy the suspicious once-over. As if Eren were the reincarnated slime that he'd cleaned from the floors last night. The older was dressed in a beige, collar shirt with sleeves rolled to the elbows. It was untucked against the sleek black pants of the PeaceCorp uniform. His hair was tousled as if he'd just rolled out of bed. In the two years, Eren had known him; he hadn't seen the slightest signs of frowziness in the shorter man. It made Rivaille seem suddenly... more human and less of the demigod he had believed the man to be. Eren stared open-mouthed at him, having lost his train of thought.

'Are you going to stand there,' Levi paused to _cough_, '-and gawk at me all day, trooper?' the man demanded.

And there was Eren's second revelation for the day. Rivaille actually _coughed_. You know… that belching sound one makes from the throat. The seventeen year old had never seen him do that before. Eren closed his mouth and shook his head, wondering what else the man could do that defied the normal laws of the universe.

'Hey kid. What do you want?' Levi asked, as he lingered behind the door. He covered his mouth with a hand. The voice sounded gruffer than usual. There was a crease in Eren's forehead as he tried to put two and two together.

'You didn't turn up at the training grounds today. I thought something might be_...off_,' Eren studied the man in the shadows.

Levi looked paler than usual and there was the reddish tinge of alcohol or...

'You're sick,' Eren concluded with a snap of his fingers (brilliant as always). 'You've got a fever. Whoa, you Titans are not as immune as I thought.'

Levi regarded him with a cold, unforgiving look.

'As adorable as you are, _sunshine_..,' Levi said this sarcastically. 'I do have a job besides babysitting you. And I'm not sick. Can you go away now?'

But Eren was already trying to look past his head, sneak a glance down the hall and Eren saw the tissue papers littered on the coffee table.

'Uh huh, you_ are_ sick, Corporal. I can help you, you know. Be the extra pair of hands around the house-' he tried to sidle past the superior and enter the house.

But Levi raised a leg, planting the foot in the middle of his chest. Levi gave a low bark, holding him off at the perimeter of the door. 'Stay. back, you overgrown oaf,' Levi growled, pushing him away (_Damn Spiderman bendiness,_ Eren thought). 'Go back to the training corps. A man's home is his _sanctuary_,' Rivaille emphasized on the last word. 'I don't have the time to quarantine you either. And besides, I already have a dog to do my bidding.'

Eren gave a scowl, not liking that comparison.

'I'm pretty sure your robodog can't cook or clean.'

Grey eyes showed a rare flash of impatience.

'Krobe can do _everything_ save for a lap dance,' his eyes turned narrow and there was a sudden glint in them. 'Heh. If you want to volunteer for _that_, I might actually consider it.'

Eren went red till his ears.

'No way!' he said indignantly.

Levi smirked.

'Then, go away, brat,' he threatened in a low voice before breaking into a series of coughs again. The raven haired man covered his mouth again. Eren felt the foot on his body shudder as Levi struggled to suppress the fits. 'It's… an order,' Levi said breathlessly before retracting his leg from Eren's chest and slammed the door close on the boy's face.

Eren was left alone in the silence of the hallway. His eyes traced the number of the apartment. Jokes apart, he realised he had been shut out again.

_Levi. _

_Why won't you let me see it? _

_That weaker side of you._

_You don't have to be strong all the time. Hell, nobody can._

The brunette looked at the door sullenly, wondering if he ought to leave. That was until he noticed the house next door.

..-..

The neighbour Mrs. Izzy Norman was a batty old lady with four cats, two of them droids, Jinxie and Cahoots, third with a dead battery and the fourth was a real, live breathing one. With sleek raven fur. Eren took an instant liking to the black cat, which sat huffy and dignified in a corner of the old neighbour's couch. It reminded him of the pokerface next door. All it needed was a cravat and Eren was sure Tabby McLevi would pass for the corporal's doppelganger.

Despite the peculiarity of his request, Mrs. Norman was kind enough to let him investigate her balcony. And just as he had thought, it was adjacent to the Corporal's bar a ten-feet gaping space between them. He could jump over those ten feet. But he didn't have his gear and the seventeen year old needed something to rein his body with. He turned to Mrs. Norman, who was studying him curiously through her old, lopsided spectacles.

'Can I... uh, borrow your curtains?' Eren asked. He decided to push his luck even further. 'And a bowl of chicken soup while you're at it, ma'am?'

Mrs. Norman stared at him, wide-eyed.

'Who _are_ you, boy? You're not thinking about leaping over to Levi's house, are you? We're on the twelfth floor,' she said pointing down. 'THE TWELFTH FLOOR!'

Eren grinned.

The batty old neighbour realised that the boy was contemplating to do _just_ that.

'But _why_? Are you an acquaintance of Levi? I didn't know that the midget had friends. How… are you related to him?'

A frown escaped Eren's lips.

How was he related to Levi? What _was_ he to that man? Just an annoying… brat who tumbled out of his bathtub? A puppy that needed taking care of? The slime under his boot? A potential lap dancer?

Eren gave a shudder at the last thought.

No, no, he was so not doing a lap dance for that jerk.

Though there was a small part of his hormone charged brain which wouldn't actually… mind.

_No. Fuck, no. Where is your dignity, Jaeger?_

Eren realised the batty old neighbour was still waiting for an answer. He shook his head glumly.

'Trust me, Mrs. Norman... I am trying to figure that out myself.'

..-..

He landed in the next door balcony in a tangle of curtains and legs. In an effort to balance the soup flask tucked under his elbow, Eren had lost a sneaker in the attempt. He watched it tumble down the skyscraper into the swirls of misty clouds below. Better a sneaker than him, he realised with a grimace. He got to his feet, untangling himself from Mrs. Norman's drapes. He peered over the ledge and gave a fleeting look to the ground below.

_Okay._

_Note to self._

_Never do that again._

Those ten feet were the closest he'd come to taunting death. He limped on one sock and walked to the glass doors. The blinds were pulled over. Biting the inside of his cheek, the brunette tried the latch to the double doors.

Locked.

_Fucking great._

_All that trouble for nothing._

Eren squatted down before the glass entrance, wondering what exactly he was doing here. And not just _here_ in the general sense of the word. Why did he keep coming back to Levi's apartment like a loyal inu shiba? Even though Keith Shadis had warned Eren that he would be in some deep _shit_ if he broke out of bounds again? Even though he'd barely escaped being classified as an unpredictable element by the Titan State itself? Even though Levi himself had personally threatened to dismember and disembowel him if Eren showed up at his apartment again? (On retrospect, Levi was always threatening him and Eren was always flouting the rules.)

So why indeed?

Of course, he knew the reason.

_Admit it, Eren. It's all because you want to give the man a lap dance_, suggested a mischievous, lewd voice in his head.

_Dammit. _

_Shut up, brain. _

Eren realised he had company. A small figure stuck its head through the vertical, white blinds. It sniffed a trail around the edge of the glass doors and sat down before him on its hind legs. Eren recognised the metallic snout sticking out from the middle of the blinds. Krobe was a droid incarnation of a rottweiler pup. It was watching him through the glass, its beady red eyes narrow and gleaming in the darkness of the apartment.

_And so, we meet again,_ the mutt greeted with a snort.

Eren glared at the droid and guided its attention to the latch.

'Can you open that, robodog?'

Krobe gave a whiff and raised one ear. '_You askin' me, punk? And why would I wanna help you, you sleazy human?'_

Eren waggled a finger in its face.

'Look,' the brunette said. 'Your master is sick. He is DYING,' Eren said overdramatically. 'Can't you see that, Krobe? He needs help and I _can_ help him.'

Krobe gave another snort at that and Eren wanted to throttle the devil spawn of machine.

No, the seventeen year old had to persist. He could do this. He could convince the stubborn mutt into letting him in.

'What if he really dies?' Eren asked, deciding to guilt trip the poor mongrel. 'What if he dies and you've got no one to fend for you? _Who_ will refill your oil tank? _Who _will take you out for a walk? There will be no one for you to welcome home. Imagine that Krobe. _No one._ Who will take you in? You might get sold to the_ scrapyard_. If he dies, will you be able to live with the guilt of having let him down, huh? WILL YOU?'

Eren Jaeger wasn't really sure if he got through to the droid mutt. The brunette buried his face in his hand and sniffled loudly, hoping the droid's fuzzy logic would buy his act.

And then, Eren counted the seconds with baited breath.

_One._

_Two._

_Three._

_Four-_

He heard a click.

Eren broke into a grin as the door slid open.

..-..

The first order of things was to get Krobe out of the way. Eren locked it up in the broom cupboard, where the droid dog barked and stewed in indignation at being treated like a sack of potatoes. It growled ferociously behind the closed door and Eren heard it scratching the closet's four walls. It was clearly livid at being cooped up inside.

Eren was half worried that the man sleeping in the living room would wake up.

The boy tiptoed across and glanced over the sides of the couch.

_No, still sleeping. _

With an elbow rolled over his face, Levi was sunk among the cushions. Eren placed Mrs. Norman's flask on the table and he folded himself in the space between the coffee table and the couch. He watched the raven haired man in the silence, the teenager's eyes stalking the arch of that sharply defined jaw. The slow rise and fall of the chest.

Was the corporal dreaming? What kind of dreams did the man have? Were they pleasant? Nightmares?

There were many things he still didn't understand about Rivaille Levi. Like why he insisted on being alone and aloof, carrying his burdens by himself. Like why he had taken a voluntary demotion from the rank of Lieutenant to Lance Corporal one year ago. When Levi made decisions, he asked his subordinates to trust him implicitly. Though Eren had seen the self-doubt flicker in those grey eyes, impassive though they may seem. And yet, to the members of his special op. squad, he was still their indisputable leader.

It was as if… his comic superhero had walked out of the pages.

A hero with his faults, undoubtedly.

But still a hero.

And a reluctant one.

And one whom Eren could not ignore or leave alone, try as he might.

He leaned forward, hovering over the shrouded face. The thin, dour lips were exposed to him. And Eren felt inclined to plant a kiss on them. If Levi woke up any moment, Eren was sure he would be skewered, disembowelled and probably dismembered too.

But it would be a great way to go.

He was halfway through his exploit when Gale interrupted.

Eren drew back with a hiss, startled out of his wits.

_Stupid network._

It was a message from Petra.

'Corporal, we received intelligence report on an insurgent bot in Brianne District. We're assembling the squad there and we will await further orders. Please respond when you receive this message.'

Eren had squeezed his eyes shut, anticipating the man on the couch to wake up any time soon.

But the silence remained.

Eren opened one eye and risked a glance at the couch.

Levi was still asleep.

Eren smiled. He took off his parka and put it around the man's shoulders.

_Let me take care of you for once._


	2. Part 2

GUARDIAN

(contd.)

Levi woke up to the cold draft in the room. He sat up against the armrest, grey eyes wandering to the clock on the wall. It was four in the afternoon, which meant he had slept for a whole, bleeding hour. His attention first flitted to the stainless steel flask on the table. It sat innocuous on the translucent glass, an object hard to miss... since the Corporal was sure there had been no flasks in his company before. He grasped a tissue paper and picked up it up daintily as if he were handling a nuclear bomb that could explode any time. Considering the enemies that Rivaille had, both old and new, both inside and outside the State, he had every reason to be cautious.

Levi sniffed around the flask's lid.

Soup, he realised in faint surprise.

Just harmless soup.

And what the hell was soup doing on his coffee table?

And then, there were the other signs.

There was the sound of muffled barking from the deep realms of the broom closet. There was the cold draft in the house, which Levi attributed to the balcony doors left carelessly open. And then, there was the green parka wrapped around him.

Levi gave a soft sigh.

It all screamed just one name.

_Eren._

_Eren Jaeger._

_Brat extraordinaire._

In the last two years, Rivaille had changed his locks thrice. Threatened the boy with excruciating pain if he ever dared to cross into Levi's comfort zone (which the boy did time and again). Levi also strived to keep their interactions to the bare minimum of lunches and status reports on the training. And yet, Eren was truly turning into the unpredictable element the State had pigeonholed him as.

So, if the brat had managed to sneak in... where _was_ he?

Levi looked around the empty apartment and his sharp gaze caught an anomaly in the order of his world. The light was switched on in the kitchen and it looked like someone had gone through the refrigerator.

No, fuck no... Levi thought as he pushed himself off the couch and trudged his way to it. The benefits of the afternoon siesta were already leaving him.

He opened the fridge and sure enough, his ammunition was missing. The gun was gone, so were his machine blades. He turned sharp and walked to the wardrobe in his bedroom. Yes, Levi found his riot control uniform taken as well. Jaeger had been thorough in his pilferage.

_That fucking moron._

'Gale,' Levi called out to the network while running a hand over his undercut. 'Replay the last five messages,' he said into the silence of 1263.

..-..

Oluo Bozado was sitting in the cruiser, shuffling his deck of cards absentmindedly. Perhaps, that wasn't the whole truth. His mind was not really wandering as it was inclined to on most days. For he was watching a particular gingerhead in the distance. Ginger, auburn, chestnut brown, he was often caught at crossroads when it came to describing the actual colour of her hair. Petra was standing outside the cruiser, going through the blueprint of the grounds with Ird and Gunther. She tucked a strand of her hair behind one ear and the woman pointed out the exits on the subway map. Brianne district was known for its notorious, labyrinthine network of underground tunnels and it was no surprise that the guerrilla bot had taken to hiding inside the maze.

'Guys, it could be anywhere between the emergency stairs to platform four,' Petra said, tracing a line on the map. Ah, there was the confidence and feistiness, he so admired. Oluo was able to hear her through the comm. And he gave a small smile. Petra Ral was all seriousness on the outside but without the Corporal present, he could mark the edginess in her tone. And yet, Oluo found the woman's voice soothing to the ears. Petra could talk about Titan's weather and he would still want to mollycoddle her. She could lecture him on how creepy he was and Oluo would still adore that gingerhead. By Jove, she could even talk about the Corporal and Oluo would still patiently listen. Because Oluo Bozado was a soppy romantic and he could do nothing about it.

Ird cleared his throat, interrupting Petra's observation. 'Any casualties yet?' the man with the small pony tail asked, fingering the good luck charm that he always wore around his neck. A memento from the wife, apparently.

Oluo sighed.

How he would like to get married himself and settle down. Except there was a certain lassie in his life who was still hung up on the unapproachable midget corporal from hell.

Petra shook her head in reply to Ird's question. 'No civilians yet. But the droid's owner was found strangled this morning.'

'The owner?' dark haired Gunther echoed with a frown.

Petra nodded, forcing her eyes back to the subway blueprint. 'That's what intelligence says. They're checking the surveillance cameras on the subway for a facegrab. It's an INSbot, guys.'

Both men pulled a face.

Even Oluo grimaced upon hearing it, a sour expression flitting across his aged features. The years had not been kind to Bozado unlike some others. Though, he was younger than their squad captain Corporal Levi, people often mistook Oluo to be the older one. And while Oluo would not give a rat's ass about what most people thought, it did bother him that Petra felt the same way. He wondered, silently wondered if he could have even a sliver of Petra Ral's attention had he looked more pleasing to the eyes.

_Just notice me already, you bonny lass,_ Oluo muttered under his breath. _I'm not getting any younger._

He sighed and looked at the tiny telescreen in the cruiser.

An INSbot.

It wasn't surprising. Titan's population had a skewered gender ratio, favouring the male child. The state's resolution to the gender crisis was to allow the flourish of the recreational droid industry. Which was a fancy name for robot sex.

Filthy, Oluo thought. Rotten, disgusting minds. Yuck, yuck, yuck.

He stuck a cigarette into his mouth and lit it, his wrinkled eyes taking on a gentle hue as he watched Petra again.

He wondered how in the world a machine could replace the caring heart of a good woman. A good woman who could have your breakfast ready for you in the morning with a cheerful, upbeat smile. Though Oluo harboured a notion that Petra Ral was probably terrible in the kitchen. But that was alright. If his bonny lass couldn't have toast and scrambled eggs ready for him and even if she wasn't a morning person, he would still want to wake up to that face ever morning rather than a stupid machine's.

Oluo's soliloquy was interrupted by the knock on the cruiser's window. He turned and found a form in riot control uniform standing outside. Oluo rolled down the window but the figure made no motion to remove its thick tinted helmet. Oluo recognised the uniform.

'C-Corporal? Is that you?' Oluo asked, putting away his cigarette quickly.

The masked figure nodded and gave a thumbs up.

Oluo narrowed his eyes. Since when did the Corporal speak in sign language? What was next? A high five? A fist bump? He gave an involuntary shiver at the very idea.

'Corporal... a-are you alright?' Oluo asked, growing suspicious. 'I heard you were not feeling well.'

The figure stiffened.

And it spoke in a voice that did not sound like the Corporal's. It was higher in treble and lacked the characteristic roughness of their leader. Maybe it was the fever talking.

'Yeah, yeah, I'm fine... uh, _shithead,_' came a gruff answer. 'What's the situation?'

Oluo frowned and pointed to the telescreen in the cruiser.

'A homicidal INSbot is hiding in the Subway, sir. Military Police wanted our assistance. Or rather they pushed the case on to us.'

There was a small silence.

'Something wrong, sir?' Oluo asked the man outside.

'A homicidal... what?'

Oluo's suspicions deepened. He looked at the dark helmet, wondering if the man was trying to pull his leg. The corporal not paying attention to a conversation? Was the world coming to an end? Was the dwarf sun finally fizzling out?

'An INSbot, sir. Are you... really fine?'

The Corporal gave a nod and dismissed his concern with a wave.

'I'm heading in,' the man said, pointing to the subway entrance.

Oluo's eyes widened.

'Whoa. But corporal, what about the rest of the squad?'

'No need, trooper. I can take care of the fucker myself. I'm uh, humanity's strongest, aren't I?'

Before Oluo could alert the others, the figure in the riot control uniform bounded off, jogging down the subway steps. He heard the thundering footsteps dwindle down, descending into the deep levels underground. Now, that Bozado squinted hard at the disappearing form, the Corporal looked taller... as if the man had grown a few inches overnight.

_Nah_.

The Corporal _tall_?

He must have imagined it.

He saw Petra shuffle over to the cruiser, her ears pressed to her wrist watch. Petra looked a little shaken.

'Oluo,' she hissed. 'The Corporal just called. He is running a little late and he asked us to be on the lookout for Eren. Who were you talking to just now?'

Oluo's eyes widened. He looked at the subway entrance through which the masked figure had disappeared. The man scowled.

_Oh, that shitty brat._

..-..

Eren didn't know what the hell had come over him. He wasn't sure what surprised him more. That he had actually stolen Levi's uniform and gear. Or the fact that no one had noticed anything suspicious about him yet. He took off his dark helmet, thankful for the tinted dark glass which had hidden his face. Tucking it under his elbow, the seventeen year old walked down the length of the subway. It was a good thing that Levi kept a riot control uniform around. The black commando suit had come in extremely handy. Eren doubted he'd have fit into the Corporal's usual army clothes, since the man was a few inches shorter than him.

An INSbot, Eren repeated out loud, his steps ricocheting off the empty subway floor. The Military Police had cordoned off the entire perimeter to let the PeaceCorps do the dirty work.

So, he was up against an INSbot, whatever the hell that was. Eren wished he had paid better attention in his training class. He ground his teeth in vexation. He didn't know what category droid it was supposed to be. But he would find it and he _would_ eliminate it, Eren pledged in silence.

He walked down the dank stretch, passing exits numbered one to four. The nuclear powered lights flickered overhead in the subway tunnel and he had the uncanny feeling that he was being followed. But when Eren turned to give a quick glance behind him, there was nothing there. Not a soul. Nor any machine.

With the tiny hairs standing at the back of his neck, Eren resumed his slow walk down the subway platform, eyeing the numerous vending machines tinkering in the sideline. The constant whirr and tinkering chaffed him, grating on his nerves. Before a thrift store, an automated mannequin waved at him and Eren's hand went instinctively to his holster. The mannequin smiled and did not seem offended.

No, this one was just a friendly.

Eren let out a deep breath, relaxed and staggered on through the lonely tunnel of Titan's subway system.

And that was when he heard it.

The footsteps behind him.

Small, jittery steps.

Eren took out Levi's Ruger P87 from the holster and turning around, he aimed it at the shadow behind him.

Eren was startled.

There was a small girl standing on the platform, ten feet away. She was wearing a lace pink frock and held on to a teddy bear in hand. She looked at the barrel of the gun and tilted her head, wondering what it was.

Eren pulled down the gun sheepishly.

'Sorry. Did I... scare you?' he asked her.

The girl was a small child, barely five years of age.

She shook her head.

'What's your name?' asked Eren as he took measured steps towards the child. She didn't answer and he sank on one knee before her. Was she scared? Was she lost and suffering from shock? Her almond eyes were a startling onyx and her hair was strawberry blonde.

Eren frowned as his gaze dipped to a bleeding gash on her right knee.

'You're hurt. What are you doing here? This area is supposed be evacuated.'

And that was when he heard footsteps and the unmistaken sound of the manoeuvring gear whistling in the subway's hollow silence. He spotted Petra emerge from the end of the subway corridor.

'EREN! GET AWAY FROM IT!' she screamed, eyes narrow and furious. She drew out her zirconium blades, leapt into air and landed a safe distance away. She stood her ground, her eyes wavering between the child and him.

Eren flinched and curled an arm around the little girl to protect her. The child mirrored him and wrapped her small, cold arms around his neck. Her head nuzzled into his cheek.

'Get away? From what? What are you talking about, Petra-' he demanded in confusion.

The auburn haired woman glared at him.

'That thing in your arms, Jaeger!'

Eren gave her an exasperated look and rolled his eyes. 'Oh, come on, Petra. She isn't a-'

But Eren never completed what he was about to say. The little girl had wrapped her hands tightly around his neck. She squeezed, her onyx eyes dilated and Eren realised how cold her small body was. Eren turned to her. He watched as she opened her little mouth and he could see the velvet inside. Not the velvet of a mouth but of satin and a serpentine tongue.

'Oh God, Eren. Get away!' he heard Petra plead. 'GET AWAY FROM HER! She strangled her last owner.'

But Eren felt his air supply go thin and his vision became cloudy. There were dots in his eyes and his heart thudded in his temple. The girl pushed him to the ground, straddling his chest and her small fingers pressed harder on his neck, trying to squeeze the life out of him. The brunette grabbed the girl's hands, grappling for control, trying to wrench the vice like grip away. But the girl was strong.

Like a machine.

Wait, she _was_ a machine.

_Fuck._

_Why didn't he see this coming?_

Eren saw a blinding shape in the air above him, like a hawk's shadow against the tunnel lights.

'EREN!' growled a familiar voice. 'Don't fucking move!' the voice urged and Eren saw the man descend in a blinding spiral. The demigod's aim was precise as always. His slice was a clean cut and the droid's head separated in a cloud of smoke and electric sparks. The decapitated head of the android rolled in the dirt, coming to a discreet stop under a drinks vending machine.

Eren felt the fingers on his neck go limp.

The headless body of the child convulsed before slipping sideways. It tipped over and lay there in a graveyard silence.

With his lungs battling for air, Eren stared at the furious man standing over him.

..-..

Levi said nothing on the way back.

Though Oluo Bozado made up for it in plenty.

Oluo called him a 'reckless teenager', a 'spoilt brat', a 'blot on the face of humanity' and a bunch of other unkind titles Eren didn't really want to remember right now. Petra glowered at him the entire time, her dainty arms crossed over her bullet proof vest. Ird and Gunther decided to have a quiet smoke together, though Eren could see them regarding him with distrust.

Of course, Levi said nothing. His placid expression alone filled the lacuna of words.

When they'd returned to Levi's apartment and had slunk through the front door, he watched as the Corporal tossed the keys on to the counter. The shorter man broke into a fit of dry coughs and sat down on the couch, breathing heavy. Though the seventeen year old wasn't sure if it was from the reigning fever or the tarrying anger. Rivaille turned to look at Eren, forcing on that neutral expression of his.

On cue, Eren zipped out of his riot control uniform, folded the suit and placed it on the counter, trying to be as neat as he could. He placed the ammo and gear beside it. And then, he turned to face the raven haired man.

They considered each other in the blue grey shadows of the apartment, Levi having not taken the effort to call the lights on. The silence bore upon the teenager more heavily than the words of Oluo Bozado.

'Why... aren't you saying anything?' Eren finally asked, unable to take it. 'Go ahead and scold me. If it makes you feel better.'

'No. Words are wasted on you,' came the stinging reply.

Eren swallowed the knot in his throat and squeezed his eyes shut.

Levi gave a low growl. 'Do you even realise the consequence of your actions? If you want to put yourself in danger, go right ahead, Jaeger. You'll be one lesser trouble for me to worry about. But don't ever fuck with my team again. I'm responsible for their lives, knucklehead. You get that?'

Eren opened his eyes and nodded, running a hand over one elbow sheepishly.

'Y-Yes, I understand.'

Levi pulled a face at him. '_Sir_,' the man corrected.

'Yes, I understand, _sir_,' amended Eren quickly. The boy bit the side of his cheek, feeling a little remorseful. 'Look. I'm sorry,' he finally admitted, his eyes fixed on the floor.

Levi gave the brunette a sharp look.

'You're _sorry_?' Levi asked him incredulously. 'Okay, trooper. Let's see whether you really understand what you're sorry about. Grab your ears.'

Eren looked up and gaped at him.

'Grab my what?'

'Grab your EARS, moron,'

Eren caught his earlobes between his fingers.

Levi smirked, amused by the prompt obedience. 'Good. Now give me ten squats and tell me all the mistakes you made today. _Loudly._ And you better repent for all of them while you're at it.'

Eren frowned at him. This was beyond degrading. This was humiliation of the most demeaning nature.

'Levi, I-' he began to protest.

Levi gave him a cold glare. He didn't want any arguments.

'I'm not seeing any squatting, soldier,' he remarked.

'Fine,' Eren sighed and taking a deep breath, he went down reluctantly for the first crouch.

'I'm sorry that I lied to your team...' Eren apologised, fingers still on his ears. 'I promise I won't do it again,' he announced as he stood back up on his feet.

Levi crossed his legs at the knees. His attention locked on the telescreen in the living room, boredom evident on his pallid face. In the faint light, he lifted a hand and indicated that Eren should continue.

Eren crouched again.

'I'm sorry that I broke into your apartment. I will try to ring the doorbell next time.'

Levi snorted, clearly not believing that one particular oath.

'I'm sorry I locked up Krobe,' said Eren, sticking his tongue out. 'But your dog was asking for it.'

Levi gave a low, resounding sigh that reverberated through the hollow apartment.

Eren kept his gaze steady on the man.

'I'm sorry I told Mrs. Norman that you're into BDSM.'

There was a small pause. Levi turned to him sharp and his face registered shock for the first time. _What? What the hell-  
_

Eren fought the instinct to smile.

'I'm sorry for being a troublemaker.'

Levi locked the boy's turquoise green eyes in a cold stare. _Yeah, you're definitely one, sunshine._

Eren smiled.

'I'm sorry that I am just an Earthborn. And I still don't understand your world. Especially why a droid was built in the likeness of a little girl and how she ever became a threat to society.'

Levi gave a shrug. He grabbed the flask on the table, twisted the lid off and took a sip from it. It was surprisingly still warm. 'Why, you ask? That's because you are clueless, sentimental and still attached to your morals. You have to be ruthless if you want to survive here in Titan. Being a pansy won't help, trooper.'

Eren gave a curt nod. He winced as he went down for the seventh sit up.

'I'm sorry I pretended to be you, Corporal. Though your shoes are too big to fill and your uniform too small.'

Levi gave him an icy glare and took another sip, watching the boy over the rim. Something passed between them. A flicker of understanding, perhaps. His grey eyes never leaving the brunette, Levi returned the flask to the table.

'Go on,' Levi urged.

'I'm sorry for almost dying. But believe me, I try not to.'

Levi remained silent, the tension from his shoulders easing.

Eren took a deep breath and resumed.

'I'm sorry that... I care about you. But I don't think I can stop feeling that way.'

There was a strained silence and the brunette was almost afraid to look up.

Eren went down for the last crouch, bending his knees. He raised himself and removed the fingers from his earlobes. He met Levi's gaze with steel like determination in his own.

'I'm sorry that I want to carry and protect you. Even if _you_ don't want me to.'

Eren let the silence consume them.

Levi turned and was watching him in cold scrutiny. What was the man thinking? What was the answer he would choose to give?

The grey eyed quasi Napolean motioned to the things spread on the counter.

'Put them back in their right places and leave,' said Levi, before sinking back into the cushions of the couch and rolling an elbow over his face.

_What a bummer, _Eren thought to himself. _Is that all you're gonna say, Levi?  
_

But he nodded. Because Eren was a soldier and he knew that the other man was his guardian, his senior. That was it. That was all their relationship could ever be. Atleast, that was the vibe he was getting. He moved to the counter, crestfallen and began picking up the things one by one.

And then, much to his surprise, the Corporal called his name.

'Eren...'

'Yes, sir?'

'... Thanks for the soup.'

Eren paused in his work, startled.

He broke into a slow grin.

'You're welcome.'

..-..

When Eren was done restoring the house to the way it used to be (and rescued Krobe from the evil clutches of the broom cupboard), he returned to the living room to find the Corporal fast asleep. Eren placed a ginger hand over the man's forehead hesitantly and was grateful to find the fever to have subsided. He went into the bedroom and returned with a blanket. He draped the sleeping man in its warmth and knelt beside the couch.

With a sigh, he watched Levi and the dark furrows under his eyes.

Eren swept away the bangs of raven hair from the man's face.

He was suddenly reminded of an old lullaby his mother used to sing to him. He stooped low to the Corporal's ear and recited it in the lowest voice he could muster.

_Hush, Little Baby, don't say a word,_

_Papa's gonna buy you a mockingbird._

_And if that mockingbird won't sing,_

_Papa's gonna buy you a diamond ring._

Eren almost laughed at that image. He grew brave enough to trace a finger along the refined cheekbones. Levi's skin was always pale as if he had lived on a frigid land, deprived of sunlight his entire life. The boy from earth forgot about Titan's dwarf sun at times. Eren traced past the nose to the upper lip, his finger coming to a pause at that taboo place. There it was, that foul mouth of Rivaille. But under the dark hues of dusk, Eren found nothing more enticing than those lips.

_And if that diamond ring turns brass,_

_Papa will kiss your mouth... so fuckin' crass,_

Without heeding to the apprehensions in his head, Eren bent down to press his mouth against the man's jaw and lingered as long as he could, watching the adam's apple twitch in Levi's neck. He grew braver and in a spirit of his old self, he lifted his brown head, hovered over the parted mouth and gave a quick nick to those thin, surly lips below. The man didn't stir; his breathing was warm and even like the waves of the blue ocean back home.

Eren finished the lullaby, his gaze softening.

_And if this kiss doesn't lead anywhere,_

_You'll still be the little hero in my universe._

When he finally drew back (or rather forced himself to), Eren put a hand to his mouth and stifled the urge to yell 'Score!'.

_Yes! _

_Yesssssssss!_

_He did it!_

Eren grinned triumphantly and retreated to the door before the jackass corporal from hell woke up and realised what he'd just done. After one last look at the man asleep on the couch, he closed the door as gently as he could. There was a click and the auto lock set in.

1263, the number plate said.

He looked long at it and with a heavy sigh, turned away from the door.

Eren Jaeger met Mrs. Norman's black cat in the hallway. It was looking at him shrewdly. _Oooh, I know what you just did in there, pussy. And you will rot in hell for that, _it seemed to be telling him. Stopping briefly to shake its paw and give a mock salute to the little beast, he forced himself to return to the gloomy loneliness of the training corp quarters.

In the living room of the twelfth floor apartment, Levi placed a hand over his face, wondering if the warmth over his face was a residue of the fever.

_Eren, you moron... that didn't even sound like a legit lullaby. _

_Stupid brat_, he muttered under his breath. _Taking advantage of a sick man._

He remembered the boy's pledge, the words echoing in the dark abyss of his mind.

_I want to carry and protect you. Even if you don't want me to._

Levi wondered who the real guardian in this contrived relationship was. He drifted back to peaceful sleep in the sojourn warmth of the blanket around him, in the sojourn warmth of Eren's lingering touch.

* * *

_The golden sun, in splendour likest Heaven_

_Allured his eye, Thither his course he bends,_

_By his magnetic beam, that gently warms_

_The universe, and to each inward part,_

_With gentle penetration, though unseen,_

_Shoots invisible virtue even to the deep,_

_So wondrously was his station set bright._

**_Book III, Paradise Lost, Milton_**


End file.
